El Salvador (2005) | Korea, North (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, Santa Ana, San Vicente, Sonsonate, Usulutan | 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 3 special cities* (si, singular and plural); Chagang-do (Chagang Province), Hamgyong-bukto (North Hamgyong Province), Hamgyong-namdo (South Hamgyong Province), Hwanghae-bukto (North Hwanghae Province), Hwanghae-namdo (South Hwanghae Province), Kaesong-si* (Kaesong City), Kangwon-do (Kangwon Province), Namp'o-si* (Namp'o City), P'yongan-bukto (North P'yongan Province), P'yongan-namdo (South P'yongan Province), P'yongyang-si* (P'yongyang City), Yanggang-do (Yanggang Province) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 36.5% (male 1,250,901/female 1,198,589)
15-64 years: 58.3% (male 1,860,084/female 2,051,140) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 153,133/female 191,085) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years:
25.52% (male 2,873,390; female 2,733,163) 15-64 years: 67.63% (male 7,301,531; female 7,556,554) 65 years and over: 6.85% (male 486,805; female 1,016,785) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; shrimp; beef, dairy products | rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs |
Airports | 73 (2004 est.) | 87 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total:
39 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 69
914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 54 (2004 est.) |
total:
48 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 24 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 8 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 21,040 sq km
land: 20,720 sq km water: 320 sq km |
total:
120,540 sq km land: 120,410 sq km water: 130 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly smaller than Mississippi |
Background | El Salvador achieved independence from Spain in 1821 and from the Central American Federation in 1839. A 12-year civil war, which cost about 75,000 lives, was brought to a close in 1992 when the government and leftist rebels signed a treaty that provided for military and political reforms. | Following World War II, Korea was split into a northern, communist half and a southern, Western-oriented half. KIM Chong-il has ruled North Korea since his father and the country's founder, president KIM Il-song, died in 1994. After decades of mismanagement, the North relies heavily on international food aid to feed its population, while continuing to expend resources to maintain an army of about 1 million. North Korea's long-range missile development and research into nuclear and chemical weapons are of major concern to the international community. |
Birth rate | 27.04 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 19.1 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.491 billion
expenditures: $2.782 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | San Salvador | P'yongyang |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands | temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer |
Coastline | 307 km | 2,495 km |
Constitution | 23 December 1983 | adopted 1948, completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992 and September 1998 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of El Salvador
conventional short form: El Salvador local long form: Republica de El Salvador local short form: El Salvador |
conventional long form:
Democratic People's Republic of Korea conventional short form: North Korea local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk local short form: none note: the North Koreans generally use the term "Choson" to refer to their country abbreviation: DPRK |
Currency | - | North Korean won (KPW) |
Death rate | 5.85 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 6.92 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.792 billion (September 2004 est.) | $12 billion (1996 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador H. Douglas BARCLAY
embassy: Final Boulevard Santa Elena Sur, Antiguo Cuscatlan, La Libertad, San Salvador mailing address: Unit 3116, APO AA 34023 telephone: [503] 278-4444 FAX: [503] 278-5522 |
none (Swedish Embassy in P'yongyang represents the US as consular protecting power) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Rene Antonio LEON Rodriguez
chancery: 2308 California Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-9671 FAX: [1] (202) 234-3834 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York (2), San Francisco, and Washington, DC consulate(s): Boston |
none; note - North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York, headed by YI Hyong-chol |
Disputes - international | in 1992, the ICJ ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary, but despite OAS intervention and a further ICJ ruling in 2003, full demarcation of the border remains stalled; the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution to a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca advocating Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not identified in the ICJ decision, off Honduras in the Gulf of Fonseca | 33-km section of boundary with China in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite; Demarcation Line with South Korea |
Economic aid - recipient | $125 million of which, $53 million from US (2003) | $NA; note - an estimated $200 million to $300 million in humanitarian aid from US, South Korea, Japan, and EU in 1997 plus much additional aid from the UN and non-governmental organizations; substantial continuing humanitarian aid, 1998-2000 |
Economy - overview | GDP per capita is roughly half that of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile, and the distribution of income is highly unequal. The government is striving to open new export markets, encourage foreign investment, modernize the tax and healthcare systems, and stimulate the sluggish economy. Implementation of the Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement, ratified by El Salvador in 2004, is viewed as a key policy to help achieve these objectives. The trade deficit has been offset by annual remittances from Salvadorans living abroad - 16% of GDP in 2004 - and external aid. With the adoption of the US dollar as its currency, El Salvador has lost control over monetary policy and must concentrate on maintaining a disciplined fiscal policy. | North Korea, one of the world's most centrally planned and isolated economies, faces desperate economic conditions. Industrial capital stock is nearly beyond repair as a result of years of underinvestment and spare parts shortages. The nation faces its seventh year of food shortages because of weather-related problems, including major drought in 2000, and chronic shortages of fertilizer and fuel. Massive international food aid deliveries have allowed the regime to escape the major consequence of spreading economic failure, such as mass starvation, but the population remains vulnerable to prolonged malnutrition and deteriorating living conditions. Large-scale military spending eats up resources needed for expanding investment and consumption goods. In 2000, the regime placed emphasis on expanding foreign trade links, embracing modern technology, and attracting foreign investment, but in no way at the expense of relinquishing central control over key national assets or undergoing market-oriented reforms. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.45 billion kWh (2004) | 26.598 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 91 million kWh (2004) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 473 million kWh (2004) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 4.158 billion kWh (2004) | 28.6 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
34.62% hydro: 65.38% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro El Pital 2,730 m |
lowest point:
Sea of Japan 0 m highest point: Paektu-san 2,744 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from disposal of toxic wastes | water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; water-borne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to:
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | mestizo 90%, white 9%, Amerindian 1% | racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese |
Exchange rates | the US dollar became El Salvador's currency in 2001 | official: North Korean won per US dollar - 2.15 (May 1994), 2.13 (May 1992), 2.14 (September 1991), 2.1 (January 1990), 2.3 (December 1989); market: North Korean won per US dollar - 200 |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma DE ESCOBAR (since 1 June 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (since 1 June 2004); Vice President Ana Vilma DE ESCOBAR (since 1 June 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 21 March 2004 (next to be held March 2009) election results: Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez elected president; percent of vote - Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez (ARENA) 57.7%, Schafik HANDAL (FMLN) 35.6%, Hector SILVA (CDU-PDC) 3.9%, other 2.8% |
chief of state:
KIM Chong-il (since NA July 1994); note - in September 1998, KIM Chong-il was reelected Chairman of the National Defense Commission, a position accorded the nation's "highest administrative authority"; KIM Yong-nam was named President of the Supreme People's Assembly Presidium and given the responsibility of representing the state and receiving diplomatic credentials head of government: Premier HONG Song-nam (since 5 September 1998) cabinet: Cabinet (Naegak), members, except for the Minister of People's Armed Forces, are appointed by the Supreme People's Assembly elections: premier elected by the Supreme People's Assembly; election last held NA September 1998 (next to be held NA) election results: HONG Song-nam elected premier; percent of Supreme People's Assembly vote - NA% |
Exports | NA | $520 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) |
Exports - commodities | offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity | minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments); agricultural and fishery products |
Exports - partners | US 65.6%, Guatemala 11.8%, Honduras 6.3% (2004) | Japan 28%, South Korea 21%, China 5%, Germany 4%, Russia 1% (1995) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL; similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which has a different coat of arms centered in the white band - it features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $22 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 9.2%
industry: 31.1% services: 59.7% (2004 est.) |
agriculture:
30% industry: 42% services: 28% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,900 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.8% (2004 est.) | -3% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 50 N, 88 55 W | 40 00 N, 127 00 E |
Geography - note | smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea | strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated |
Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 10,029 km
paved: 1,986 km (including 327 km of expressways) unpaved: 8,043 km (1999 est.) |
total:
31,200 km paved: 1,997 km unpaved: 29,203 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.4%
highest 10%: 39.3% (2001) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine; small amounts of marijuana produced for local consumption; domestic cocaine abuse on the rise | - |
Imports | NA | $960 million (c.i.f., 1999 est.) |
Imports - commodities | raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity | petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment; consumer goods, grain |
Imports - partners | US 46.3%, Guatemala 8.1%, Mexico 6% (2004) | China 33%, Japan 17%, Russia 5%, South Korea 4%, Germany 3% (1995) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Industries | food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals | military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 25.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 27.98 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
23.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.4% (2004 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ARF (dialogue partner), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 360 sq km (1998 est.) | 14,600 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are selected by the Legislative Assembly) | Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly) |
Labor force | 2.75 million (2004 est.) | 9.6 million |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 17.1%, industry 17.1%, services 65.8% (2003 est.) | agricultural 36%, nonagricultural 64% |
Land boundaries | total: 545 km
border countries: Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km |
total:
1,673 km border countries: China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, Russia 19 km |
Land use | arable land: 31.85%
permanent crops: 12.07% other: 56.08% (2001) |
arable land:
14% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 61% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) | Korean |
Legal system | based on civil and Roman law, with traces of common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on German civil law system with Japanese influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa (84 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 16 March 2003 (next to be held March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FMLN 31, ARENA 28, PCN 15, PDC 5, CD 5 |
unicameral Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin Hoeui (687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 26 July 1998 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - the KWP approves a single list of candidates who are elected without opposition; minor parties hold a few seats |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.22 years
male: 67.61 years female: 75.01 years (2005 est.) |
total population:
71.02 years male: 68.04 years female: 74.15 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 10 and over can read and write
total population: 80.2% male: 82.8% female: 77.7% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write Korean total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
Location | Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras | Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 200 nm | territorial sea:
12 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM note: military boundary line 50 NM in the Sea of Japan and the exclusive economic zone limit in the Yellow Sea where all foreign vessels and aircraft without permission are banned |
Merchant marine | - | total:
110 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 661,792 GRT/903,367 DWT ships by type: bulk 4, cargo 94, combination bulk 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, refrigerated cargo 1, short-sea passenger 2 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy (FNES), Air Force (FAS) | Korean People's Army (includes Army, Navy, Air Force), Civil Security Forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $157 million (2003) | $3.7 billion to $4.9 billion (FY98 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.1% (2003) | 25% to 33% (FY98 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
5,943,735 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
3,574,050 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
179,136 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948) |
Nationality | noun: Salvadoran(s)
adjective: Salvadoran |
noun:
Korean(s) adjective: Korean |
Natural hazards | known as the Land of Volcanoes; frequent and sometimes very destructive earthquakes and volcanic activity; extremely susceptible to hurricanes | late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall |
Natural resources | hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land | coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -3.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 37 km; petroleum product 180 km |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Rodolfo PARKER]; Democratic Convergence or CD (formerly United Democratic Center or CDU) [Ruben ZAMORA, secretary general]; Democratic Party or PD [Jorge MELENDEZ]; Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front or FMLN [Medardo GONZALEZ]; Liberal Democratic Party or PLD [Kirio Waldo SALGADO, president]; National Action Party or PAN [Gustavo Rogelio SALINAS, secretary general]; National Conciliation Party or PCN [Ciro CRUZ ZEPEDA, president]; National Republican Alliance or ARENA [Elias Antonio SACA Gonzalez]; Social Christian Union or USC (formed by the merger of Christian Social Renewal Party or PRSC and Unity Movement or MU) [Abraham RODRIGUEZ, president]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Juan MEDRANO] | Chondoist Chongu Party [YU Mi-yong, chairwoman]; Korean Social Democratic Party [KIM Pyong-sik, chairman]; major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Chong-il, General Secretary] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | labor organizations - Electrical Industry Union of El Salvador or SIES; Federation of the Construction Industry, Similar Transport and other activities, or FESINCONTRANS; National Confederation of Salvadoran Workers or CNTS; National Union of Salvadoran Workers or UNTS; Port Industry Union of El Salvador or SIPES; Salvadoran Union of Ex-Petrolleros and Peasant Workers or USEPOC; Salvadoran Workers Central or CTS; Workers Union of Electrical Corporation or STCEL; business organizations - National Association of Small Enterprise or ANEP; Salvadoran Assembly Industry Association or ASIC; Salvadoran Industrial Association or ASI | NA |
Population | 6,704,932 (July 2005 est.) | 21,968,228 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 36.1% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.75% (2005 est.) | 1.22% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Acajutla, Puerto Cutuco | Ch'ongjin, Haeju, Hungnam (Hamhung), Kimch'aek, Kosong, Najin, Namp'o, Sinuiju, Songnim, Sonbong (formerly Unggi), Ungsang, Wonsan |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 16, FM 14, shortwave 12 (1999) |
Radios | - | 3.36 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 283 km
narrow gauge: 283 km 0.914-m gauge note: length of operational route reduced from 562 km to 283 km by disuse and lack of maintenance (2004) |
total:
5,000 km standard gauge: 4,095 km 1.435-m gauge (3,500 km electrified; 159 km double track) narrow gauge: 665 km 0.762-m gauge dual gauge: 240 km 1.435-m and 1.600-m gauges (four rails interlaced) (1996 est.) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 83%, other 17%
note: there is extensive activity by Protestant groups throughout the country; by the end of 1992, there were an estimated 1 million Protestant evangelicals in El Salvador |
traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)
note: autonomous religious activities now almost nonexistent; government-sponsored religious groups exist to provide illusion of religious freedom |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 17 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system international: country code - 503; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Russian (Indian Ocean region); other international connections through Moscow and Beijing |
Telephones - main lines in use | 752,600 (2003) | 1.1 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,149,800 (2003) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 5 (1997) | 38 (1999) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau | mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east |
Total fertility rate | 3.16 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.26 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6.3% - but the economy has much underemployment (2004 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | Rio Lempa partially navigable (2004) | 2,253 km
note: mostly navigable by small craft only |